Disappointment for Lee at world champs

The St Leonards middle distance runner was unsuccessful in his quest to reach the men’s 1,500m final at the IAAF World Indoor Championships 2014.

Emanuel finished fifth in his heat in Sopot, Poland, last Friday morning and said he was disappointed with his performance in his post-race interview with BBC television.

Things appeared to be going smoothly as Emanuel led at 1,000m and 1,200m, but he was then bumped and knocked off balance by Czech competitor Jakub Holusa.

Emanuel never really recovered from that setback and crossed the line in 3:48.09, just 0.03 seconds behind fourth-placed American athletic Lopez Lomong.

The top two runners went through to the final with Holusa finishing second to German winner Homiyu Tesfaye, who clocked 3:47.07. The other Great Britain representative, Chris O’Hare, also failed to reach the final after the Scot came fourth in the second of three heats.

Although not the result he had hoped for, Emanuel can still reflect on a very successful indoor season. He won the British Indoor Championships in Sheffield five weeks ago having clocked the fastest time in the world for the mile this indoor season in New York at the end of January.

The 29-year-old has already flown back out to New Mexico for three months of training in preparation for the outdoor season during the summer when his main focus will be on the Commonwealth Games.